“We need to get a win first,” said Jones, standing in front of his locker Thursday. “We ain’t going to talk about the playoffs.”

One can almost hear the echoes of the memorable Jim Mora news conference sound bite from 2001, when an incredulous Mora responded to a question about his 4-6 Indianapolis Colts’ postseason chances.

“Playoffs?” said Mora in a high-pitched voice. “Don’t talk about — playoffs? You kidding me? Playoffs? I just hope we can win a game.”

For the record, the Colts didn’t make the playoffs that season. The 5-5 Packers are hoping for a better fate, even if they won’t talk about it.

“We know exactly where we are on the season,” Packers coach Mike McCarthy said. “I’m not big into the playoff picture. I think it’s a waste of time. You really have to stay focused on what you’re doing. That’s really a message to our football team. We have more to give, and we all need to give it.”

Jones initially heard McCarthy’s message about the playoffs during his first NFL season in 2007 and never has forgotten.

“McCarthy told me as a rookie, ‘Never talk about the playoffs until you get 10 wins,’ ” Jones said. “And I never have.”

The Packers are only halfway to the 10-victory mark, which is what it likely will take to earn a postseason berth. The problem is they have only six games remaining, and two will in all likelihood be played without quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

The Panthers (7-3) and 49ers (6-4) have the inside track for the NFC wild-card berths, meaning the Packers will either need to capture the NFC North title or stay home in January for the first time in five years.

Although the Packers trail the Lions and Bears by only one game, they will be forced to beat both of them on the road. That’s not so difficult if their best player is behind center, but the task of stealing a victory in Detroit next week without Rodgers will be extremely challenging.

There’s also the matter of the relatively soft schedules of the Lions and Bears, who each face just one team the rest of the way with a winning record.

A loss to the Lions next week likely will leave the Packers two games behind in the standings, and since the Lions swept the Bears this season, they would hold the tiebreaker edge over Green Bay based on a better division record. In effect, a Thanksgiving loss means the Packers would need to make up three games over Detroit in the final four weeks.

So unless Rodgers makes a miraculous return next week to spearhead a victory over the Lions, the Packers’ playoff chances will be reduced to slim and none.